The first 3 photos come from an anonymous donor. I will give these photos to the Sugar Land Heritage Foundation on his behalf. (Thanks for the kind donation.)
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| Coca-Cola bottlers enjoy a customer-appreciation event at Imperial Sugar in the late 1920s. |
I'm not certain I've seen these aerial photos before. They give a good view of the area around the Char House in the mid 1930s.
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| Downtown Sugar Land mid 1930s. |
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| Another aerial of downtown Sugar Land in the mid 1930s. |
I've blown up a couple of areas to show some detail. This first one shows a good portion of the town's commercial district. Note the building on the far left. It housed the town's bakery, cafe, and barber shop. Also notice the flower arrangements in the esplanade. The one on the left says, 'Sugar Land, Texas.' I think the one on the right is the logo for the Southern Pacific Railroad. My mother has told me that the depot manager, Mr. Bagesse, tended these civic flower beds and kept them looking beautiful.
This next blow-up shows the area where the fire house was located. It's the building with the square facade on the second floor. The building to the right looks like a large garage, which is what it was. Imperial and the Sugarland Industries probably maintained their vehicles there at the time these photos were taken. Eventually, the volunteer fire department kept it's vehicles there. You can see a billboard in front of the garage. I have the artwork for its design. Unfortunately, I don't have it available, but it's a black background with text saying 'Imperial Sugar' and a cotton sack of sugar on the right.
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| Cotton sacks of sugar, 1930s(?) |
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| Raw Sugar Warehouse, late 1950s |
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| Automated Distribution Warehouse under construction in late 1960s. |
